Catholic/Christian Help

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noeylani94

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Hello,

I’m 14 years-old and am having trouble in a forum topic located on a different website. It’s basically an attack on all Catholics and Christians. I’m the only Catholic active in the topic and there’s people affecting my faith. The topic is located here (justdubsforums.com/showthread.php?t=142) and my username is “Noeylani94”. Please pray for me to be able to defend my position. What would be even better is if a few people registered and stayed active in the topic. It would really help boost my spirits. Thank you! God bless!
  • noeylani94
 
**Darling, you’re 14, and please, what you need to do at this stage is to pray for them. You need to study and consolidate your faith and understanding of Catholic truths before you put yourself in the danger you already feel.
You are very precious.
For the sake of Jesus in your life, please follow these words from the bible.
Please take it as the word of God to you at this stage of your life, brave warrior.

“Have nothing to do with the pointless philosophical discussions and antagonistic beliefs of the ‘knowledge’ which is not knowledge at all; by adopting this, some have gone right away from the faith. Grace be with you**.” [1 Timothy 6 20-21]
 
Interesting thread.

One of the major pitfalls of reading too deeply into the post you pointed us to is that a lot of people there ‘have the answer’. Two posters in particular, Number 13 and Paranoid007 completely lack the context to make most of their statements. If you try and get involved in meaning dialog with folks like this, you will certainly run into some issues.

The Church has over 2000 years of people who have pondered and poked these questions, only to shed a little more light. So much of our lives is a mystery, a beautiful God-given mystery that if you think you have it all down, you need to start over.

Most of this is cloud-philosophy at its finest. Number 13 stated:
‘because i know what thier views on most subject [sic] but i don’t know your’s [sic]’ when referring to the Catholic community. If he really knows all this then:
  1. Why is he not actually spelling the points out
  2. He has closed his mind off to any new information.
You can always start by challenging individual points. ‘So it you know XXX about Catholicism, what is your opinion on XXX.’ Be prepared to respond (come back here and ask) and then challenge that point. Broad generalization about subjects that give someone the appearance of intelligence are a staple of these boards and you best off if you can see that and avoid them. (That being said, I think I am guilty of the former.)
 
Please may I ask that any questions these folk have raised in your mind, and any doubts, you’ll bring you questions to us in the Forums so we can set your heart and mind at rest?

Dearest Jesus please give Your protection and Your wisdom and faithfulness to this wonderful young Catholic. Please give the gifts You wish to give, and lead this willing young person to become a great witness to the gospel and to the Church, and to always a sincere loving Catholic
 
Yes, I am 14, but I’m perfectly capable of defending myself or the Catholic faith. When I say that it’s affecting, me, I’m saying that it makes me have doubts about some things from the Bible. Questions:

Does the Pope say he’s the voice of God?
And, why did God kill/command people to kill so many people in the Old Testament? (Look at the topic for reference to what I’m talking about)

@Trishie,

I don’t believe this discussion is pointless, therefore that Bible reference doesn’t apply to me. I will not be ignorant. I’ve been involved in a few of these types of discussions/debates and haven’t had my faith weakened.

@fermat
One of the major pitfalls of reading too deeply into the post you pointed us to is that a lot of people there ‘have the answer’. Two posters in particular, Number 13 and Paranoid007 completely lack the context to make most of their statements. If you try and get involved in meaning dialog with folks like this, you will certainly run into some issues.
Click to expand...
Can you please go into further detail as to what you mean by this, particularly “issues”? Are you saying that they think that they know it all and most of their statements are based off of nothingness?

I hope i’m not coming off as rude to anyone that’s reading this! I really appreciate any post that will help in any form! 👍
 
Does the Pope claim to be the voice of God? No. He is the shepherd of the flock on earth. He is one of the Bishops - the Bishop of Rome. Remember that Jesus left the apostles with a mission. They never claimed to be the voice of God. They listened to the Holy Spirit and tried to lead God’s people to the Truth. That still stands today.

As for God commanding people to be killed, someone with a deeper understanding of theology than I have should answer that. I’ll share my opinion, but know that it’s just that. I think God wants us all to be in heaven with him. The people that were killed were worshiping false gods. The Jews had a tendency to follow the practices of those people they were around, which meant that, eventually, they too would worship false gods. God prevented that by removing those other cultures. By the way, when we talk about false gods in the OT, it’s not simply praying to these gods that was a problem. They would sacrifice people to those gods - sometimes their own children.

There are many reasons to believe in God - one of them is hope. Believing in God gives me hope for an incredible eternity. Nothing wrong with that. But for here on this earth, I believe in God because nothing else can explain creation, nothing else can explain morality, nothing else can explain love, nothing else can explain personality. Atheists believe that all there is is material things - things you can see and touch. But we know there is more. There is knowledge. You can’t “see” knowledge. There is love. You can’t see love or friendship. You can’t measure it. You can’t say, it’s this big, or this color, or weighs this much. Logic tells us there is more than just the physical world. Science tells us there was creation. It’s called the “big bang” theory. Science knows exactly when the universe began. There is so much evidence for God. Those who believe otherwise are closing their minds to everything around them.

You might find it helpful to check out a book by Peter Kreeft called Yes or No. It gives the arguments for believing, and it’s very readable. You can probably get it at your local library.
 
Keep on defending the Truth. And if you need some help, just check with some of the apologists on this forum. I’m sure they will be able to help you out. Stay charitable.

Hail Mary,
full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the Fruit Of Thy Womb,
Jesus.
Holy Mary,
Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of our death.
Amen
 
By ‘issues’, I mean that no matter what you say to them, you will not gain much traction. You can deliver them the complete teachings of the Church in a clear cut, no-nonsense fashion, but until they are ready to listen, it is not going to do much good.

Let me give you a highly-exagerated version of what I read:
You: I love being Catholic

Them: I’m nothing because nothing is the source of everything.

You: What?

Them: I know what you believe and I believe in nothing. Moon people move back and forth to creat tidal somethings that have an inverse impact on the squash production. Given that, how can you possibly be Catholic?

end

This kind of discussion is extremely difficult simply because the person you are talking to lacks the context to understand what you are trying to say. If you are sucessfully explain anything, these folks need to both want to understand and try to understand. It is my opinion that neither of those conditions are there.

This is important because if you stay engaged for too long your own perceptions will start to warp some and you become confused. It happens to the best apologist I know. You always need some time at home to refresh yourself. I would excuse yourself from debate for a week or so and see if it continues. If it does, go back in with a fresh mind. If it dies, so be it.
 
By the way, when we talk about false gods in the OT, it’s not simply praying to these gods that was a problem. They would sacrifice people to those gods - sometimes their own children.
Click to expand...
I have heard from an older lady at my church (when working at a voluntary bible school camp) that in the OT, followers of God also sacrificed their own children. So if that reason were true, wouldn’t it be hypocritical for God (not saying that he is at all because I don’t believe he is) to eliminate other religions for that reason when he was doing the same? I hope I didn’t lose anyone there. Not sure if that sentence made an sense 🤷

Anyways, thanks again for all the replies! :]
 
There is no place in the OT where God demands human sacrifice except with Abraham’s son Isaac. You probably remember that story, where Isaac is spared by the angel of God. This was a test for Abraham. The story is so much more. Isaac is Abraham’s beloved son, his only son (by his wife - other son was from his wife’s servant). Abraham and Isaac climb a mountain. Isaac carries the wood for the fire. He allows his father to tie him up on the altar (he is old enough to know what is happening). Isaac freely gives himself on the altar. Isaac represents Christ, God’s only son, who carried his own cross and freely gave his life for us. Read the story in detail and you will see many more parallels to the passion and death of the Messiah.

There is one other place where one of God’s chosen people (a king) sacrifices his child, but this is done not at the demand of God but at the initiative of the king himself. I think the lesson for us is that the people were so taken in by the practices of the pagans that they would begin to do the same things. The OT never makes a statement about how God sees the action of this king. It simply tells the story of the king.

The lady at your church was not correct in what she stated to you.
 
Trishie said:
**Darling, you’re 14, and please, what you need to do at this stage is to pray for them. You need to study and consolidate your faith and understanding of Catholic truths before you put yourself in the danger you already feel.
You are very precious.
For the sake of Jesus in your life, please follow these words from the bible.
Please take it as the word of God to you at this stage of your life, brave warrior.

“Have nothing to do with the pointless philosophical discussions and antagonistic beliefs of the ‘knowledge’ which is not knowledge at all; by adopting this, some have gone right away from the faith. Grace be with you**.” [1 Timothy 6 20-21]
Click to expand...
Hello noeylani94 i believe Trishie gave you some very good advice as have others but the best was…“Have nothing to do with the pointless discussions with antagonistic people.”
They have little or no knowledge & certainly no faith.You have shown by asking many questions about the Old testament that you have been affected.Please if you have questions we have experts here at CAF the Apologetics who are more than qualified to answer any & all your questions.Please ask & please pray to keep your faith nourished.
I will keep you in my prayers my young friend.May God bless you guide you and lead you to Him.Amen
 
noeylani94 said:
Hello,

I’m 14 years-old and am having trouble in a forum topic located on a different website. It’s basically an attack on all Catholics and Christians. I’m the only Catholic active in the topic and there’s people affecting my faith. The topic is located here (justdubsforums.com/showthread.php?t=142) and my username is “Noeylani94”. Please pray for me to be able to defend my position. What would be even better is if a few people registered and stayed active in the topic. It would really help boost my spirits. Thank you! God bless!
  • noeylani94
Click to expand...
“A man that is a heretic, after the first and second admonition, abandon” (Titus 3:10)

I used to spend an awful lot of time on these forums arguing my positions. Trust me, it can do more spiritual harm than good.

Yours in Christ
Joe
 
Yes, but I believe I won’t be settled unless questions are answered and I get involved in discussions like these. When I get involved in discussions, I learn two sides of the story. If an Atheist came up to me and started a debate with me, I’d like to be able to defend myself and my religion.
 
noeylani94 said:
Yes, but I believe I won’t be settled unless questions are answered and I get involved in discussions like these. When I get involved in discussions, I learn two sides of the story. If an Atheist came up to me and started a debate with me, I’d like to be able to defend myself and my religion.
Click to expand...
You are right you should be able to give a defense, that will come with experience and maturity. You’ll also learn when it is helpful to continue a discussion and when it’s not. The Fathers are almost unanimous in saying that it is unprofitable to speak to those who do not hear.

Remember, no matter what they say you have 2000 years of unbroken tradition and God-bearing Fathers such as Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and Pope Leo the Great on your side. Please pay heed to what they have told you. Deut 32:7

Yours in Christ
Joe
 
And with these discussions I learn more about my faith. I’ve talked to one of the priests at my church and he answered my questions before. If I avoid discussions like these I won’t learn anything and it will not come with maturity and experience.
 
noeylani94 said:
And with these discussions I learn more about my faith. I’ve talked to one of the priests at my church and he answered my questions before. If I avoid discussions like these I won’t learn anything and it will not come with maturity and experience.
Click to expand...
You are in my prayers my friend, please keep me in yours. 🙂

Yours in Christ
Joe
 
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